Capturing the full extent of resource usage and environmental impacts from agricultural production and service delivery, and identifying areas for improvement.

The challenge

Understanding value chain impacts

It is becoming increasingly important to understand resource use across the value chain, to account for levels of environmental impact and identify possible productivity gains.

All farm activities need to be accounted for in a life cycle assessment.

All farm activities need to be accounted for in a life cycle assessment.

A farmer is very good at telling you what their inputs are: fuel usage, amount of fertiliser applied, etc.; as well as their outputs: harvested yields. Unfortunately they do not have the tools on hand to measure the environmental impacts of their actions, such as greenhouse gas emissions released during the cropping cycle.

A growing number of industries are facing market access requirements and social pressures from end consumers to demonstrate their environmental credentials, and precisely measure the environmental sustainability of their practices across the entire production chain.

Failure to comply risks being locked out of lucrative domestic and international markets via regulatory measures, or lose market share to competitors who are able to display better, more sustainable business practices.

Our response

Eco-accounting

We were supported by the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation to work with Lifecycles to develop agricultural inventory for AusLCI (Australian Life Cycle Inventory). This life cycle inventory can be used to conduct assessments that compare products, identify practices that can be improved, provide trade access where environmental credentials are required, as well as other applications.

These life cycle assessment capabilities can now be accessed by Australian agricultural industries looking to demonstrate the environmental sustainability of their practices. Life cycle assessments are also a valuable method of identifying inefficiencies, which can lead to improved productivity and reduced environmental impacts.